Musings of a mom of 3, freelance copyeditor, voracious reader, and enthusiastic cook.

May 03, 2013

Snowflakes That Stay on My Nose and Eyelashes

These are a few of my favorite things:

1. The Dropkick Murphys are played a lot in Boston anyhow, but especially right after the Boston Marathon bombing. I only just learned that the lyrics to "I'm Shipping Up to Boston" come from Woody Guthrie! Really!

2. If you have just about had it with this week, try watching this for a bit. (via CopyCurmudgeon)

3. A couple weeks ago, the Associate Press's Twitter feed was hacked, and a bogus tweet about a White House explosion went out to the millions. I didn't see the tweet until after I'd already heard about the hacking, but lots of eagle-eyed editors suspected it was phony because it didn't follow AP style. (For you non-editors out there, all journalists follow the style manual put out by the AP, whereas book editors, like me, generally follow the Chicago Manual of Style. Yes, there are differences.)

4. This is positively brilliant—how to avoid saying the wrong thing to someone who is ill or in trouble or suffering in any way. (via Scott)

7. If you are an "I Love Lucy" fan, this is such a treat: Someone in the studio audience back in 1951 shot a clip of an episode being filmed, so we finally get to see everything in color! (When Julie is home sick or on school vacation, she loves to watch "I Love Lucy." She still hasn't seen the Vitameatavegamin one or the candy factory one, though.)

8. Apparently "slash" (the word, not the symbol) is now being used in a new way (scroll about halfway down). I keep forgetting to ask Steph if she's seen it.

9. A few years ago Dave Barry wrote a wonderful piece about getting his first colonoscopy. Here's how it begins:

OK. You turned 50. You know you're supposed to get a colonoscopy. But you haven't. Here are your reasons:

1. You've been busy.

2. You don't have a history of cancer in your family.

3. You haven't noticed any problems.

4. You don't want a doctor to stick a tube 17,000 feet up your butt.

Let's examine these reasons one at a time. No, wait, let's not. Because you and I both know that the only real reason is No. 4.

This was apropos reading for me today, since I joined the colonoscopy club this morning. As everyone had told me, the prep was a bazillion times worse than the actual procedure, which I slept through. I am very glad it's over!